The human spine comprises some vertebrae grouped into three sections according to location: cervical spine (neck), thoracic spine (middle back), and lumbar spine (lower back). Soft tissues, including ligaments, muscles, and skin, surround and support the spine. Seven of the vertebrae form the cervical spine connecting the base of the head to the thorax (trunk and shoulders) and supporting the head.
In the practice of emergency medicine and the treatment of trauma, when damage to the cervical spine in suspected, there is often a need to secure the head and neck of a patient, to prevent movement of the cervical spine vertebrate and deterioration of the patient's condition. Spinal cord damage can result in partial or complete paralysis or even death.
Cervical collars are a common protective device well known in the medical art. In the treatment of spinal cord damage it is common to perform x-ray or similar imaging of the damaged area. Therefore cervical collars are often made of materials transparent to x-rays. Cervical collars are additionally often required to be lightweight and comfortable, and also to be cheap and easy to manufacture.
Furthermore, in the practice of emergency medicine and the treatment of trauma it is common for a patient to loose consciousness and the ability to maintain open airways and respiration. Loss of respiration is often fatal. There are several methods known in the art for maintaining open airways. One invasive technique is surgical cricothyroidotomy involving the insertion of a tube through the neck of the patient.
There is therefore a need simultaneously to protect the spine and maintain open airways, as both conditions, damage to the spine and suffocation, are highly damaging, often fatal, and usually irreversible. Therefore there is a need for cervical collars to enable opening of the airways. It is thus common for cervical collars to comprise a hole or an opening in the region of the front of the neck to allow invasive techniques such as surgical cricothyroidotomy.
There are techniques known in the art for maintaining open airways by maintaining an open mouth. Being less invasive than perforating the neck, they are usually preferable. However, the need to open the mouth of a patient tends to conflict with the requirement of maintaining a rigid position of the head to prevent damage to the spine. There are techniques known in the art for opening the mouth while minimizing other motion of the head. Such techniques include several variations on the jaw thrust maneuver. Existing cervical collars tend to interfere with the execution of such techniques, and none assist such non-invasive techniques.
The following is a list of variations of cervical collars and similar devices. Some describe means for enabling circulation of air around the neck, some comprise a hole or an opening in the region of the of the neck, but none describe means for opening the mouth in order to maintain open airways into the lungs.
Various patent show means for immobilizing the head of injured patients. Hence, U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,509 to Grundei et al. discloses a cervical support that has an inherently stable support body of elastic foam material, and a jaw support regions which extend symmetrically and in mirror image relationship with respect to an imaginary longitudinal axis connecting the centers of the nape support region and the chin support region. This collar constructed from two parts adapted to be mutually assembled rigidly, without effective means of maneuvering mandibular-clasping members of the collar. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,785,058 to Reynolds teaches a disposable head and neck immobilization device allows reducing contamination hazard from transfer of bodily fluids. The mandibular is effectively fastened by means of said collar, yet airway maintenance is not provided.
Lastly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,632 to Cotroneo presents a head rest device for use under a patient's head, the device comprising a base and a jaw thrust support having at least two protuberances extending upward from the upper surface of the base for engaging with the patient's mandible at angles of the mandible so that the patient's mandible is thrust out distracting the patients tongue and associated structures in a direction away from the patients head and neck, and in so doing, opening the patient's oropharynx and hypopharynx and lifting the patients epiglottis out from in front of the patient's laryngeal inlet. A portable cervical collar adapted to providing trauma patient treated in the field and transferred to hospital an airway maintenance with cervical spin control is yet not available and thus meets a long felt need.